Does size matter?

With the New Year comes the usual wave of 'new' television shows, telling us how to lose weight and become fitter, faster happier and healthier.  Style gurus come out of the wood work to illustrate how you should go about dressing your new body once you've completed these transformations.  It always confuses me a little, that they focus so hard on those that have achieved this ideal, forgetting that there are literally millions of people who aren't quite there yet but still have to get dressed in the morning.  Years ago I remember watching a Trinny and Susannah episode where they were dressing Jo Brand for an Awards show, they complained on camera about how difficult it was, I spent the half hour wondering how lazy they were, particularly when I saw the black tent they made her wear.  Dressing larger people is no different from dressing anyone else, when you know what to look for and where.  The truth is that there are no hard and fast rules, when it comes to personal shopping the emphasis is on personal, as in the individual.  When I work with a client I have the freedom to go to the best places for them, rather than being limited by the buyers of an individual store, with the internet this can be done without even having to walk anywhere.  It's no different from working with anyone else, it's about finding clothes that work for the individuals lifestyle and make them feel alive.

When I was a size 24, not so long ago, I was my own worst enemy when it came to dressing because I didn't want to be noticed, so I wore loose block colour clothes, which made me look bigger than I actually was because any shape I did have was hidden under yards of fabric.  I'm not saying that Lycra would have been my friend either but there are ways of disguising through misdirection that work much better than just throwing up a camouflage screen.  The problem is that bigger people tend to have giant personalities and so hiding isn't an option not because of the way they look but because of who they are, so if you can't hide, why not step to the front and accept that you still deserve to be the best you can be?  Instead of deciding to treat yourself when you reach a certain goal, why not do it now?  Treat the person you are, so that whilst you are waiting for the transformation to come to fruition, you are already getting used to the idea of being nice to yourself.  It is not the sole right of the perfectly formed to look in the mirror and feel good about themselves, it should be universal.

I know the High Street can feel a little like an obstacle course of pain when it comes to clothes shopping and it is easier to fall back on the old staples rather than risking embarrassment from trying something new but this is true whether you are big or small, male or female and taking back up is never a bad plan.  Asking for help can be difficult but when it comes, it can make everything else so much easier.